Shiva
Shiva is a demon in the series. History In the Hindu religion, Shiva the Destroyer is one of the three principle deities of the Trimurti (Hindu Triad) along with Brahma the Creator and Vishnu the Preserver. He originally evolved from the early Vedic god, Rudra, and is now the supreme deity within Shaivism, a branch of Hinduism that focuses on the worship of Shiva. While he is known as the destroyer, he is also considered to be a benevolent and beneficial force, as without destruction, new creation couldn't take place. He also acts against premature destruction, going far enough to withstand great suffering. He is depicted with up to four arms, a third eye, a blue throat, matted hair, carrying a trident and a drum, is often accompanied by a serpent and rides on the back of the sacred bull Nandi. The first of Shiva's best known attributes is his third eye, which he once used to burn the god of love, Kamadeva, to ashes. The effulgence from this act was so hot not even the god of fire Agni could handle it and it was used to create the war god Kartikeya. Shiva also has a blue throat that was caused when he swallowed the most deadly poison in the world, Halahala, the poison of the primordial snake Vasuki, earning him the name Vishakantha (one who held poison in his throat). This act is further proof of his benevolent and self-sacrificing nature. He is the husband of the goddess Parvati, or Shakti, in all her incarnations and has two sons, Ganesha and Skanda. He also has many incarnations that would go on to become sacred figures in their own right such as Shankara and Hanuman. Shiva is also worshiped in forms born from the fusion of himself and other gods, such as Harihara when fused with Vishnu or Ardhanarishvara when he's fused Parvati or Shakti. Followers of a religion called Shaktism believe the Shiva is an aspect or reflection of the Divine Mother, or Shakti. Another name for Shiva is Mahakala, who, in Buddism, is a fierce protector deity who is equivalent to Shiva. Appearances *''Megami Tensei II: Deity Race *Kyuuyaku Megami Tensei: Deity Race *Shin Megami Tensei: Tenma Race *Shin Megami Tensei II: Fury Race *Shin Megami Tensei: if...'' / Hazama's Chapter: Fury Race *''Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne: Fury Race *Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE: Destroyer Race *Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey: Fury Race *Shin Megami Tensei IV: Fury Race *Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers: Fury Race *Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner 2: Tyrant Race, Optional Boss (Fury Race in Japanese) *Devil Survivor'' / Overclocked: Deity Race *''Devil Survivor 2'' / Record Breaker: Omega Race **''Devil Survivor 2 The Animation'' Profile ''Shin Megami Tensei'' The traditional method of fusing Shiva from Barong and Rangda originated from the first game. It should be noted that Shiva is the highest recruitable Tenma, and that, like Vishnu, Shiva cannot be fused with any other demons - the game won't even create a slime from fusion and will never make any fusions. ''Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne'' Shiva appears as a distinct powerful demon that cannot be encountered nor recruited by the Demi-Fiend in Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne. Instead, he can only be summoned once the protagonist reaches Lv. 95 or above and performs the special fusion consists of the demons Barong and Rangda. ''Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE'' Shiva appears as a powerful event boss, spawning with Nandi, Parvati, and Ganesha. Acquiring his plug-in within game requires achieving the highest monthly score within the Ultimate Battle Coliseum and completing the Champion Course. He can be fused by a Kartikeya variant, Parvati, and Ganesha. Only after Rangda and Barong's plug-ins were implemented were players also able to fuse him in the traditional double-fusion. ''Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey'' Shiva again can be fused through Special Fusion between Barong and Rangda. ''Shin Megami Tensei IV'' Shiva returns as a special fusion between Barong and Rangda. The Terminal Guardian uses Barong and Rangda to defend the final terminal; when they are defeated, he fuses them into Shiva and resumes the fight. ''Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers'' Shiva can be metamorphosed into the Trishula, the most powerful sword in the game. He is the highest level demon that can be obtained by the player, at level 85. Shiva is also used in the battle with Kyouji Kuzunoha in the Extra Dungeon. ''Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner 2'' Shiva appears as an optional boss in the eastern room of the 6th Layer of the Sun 3F, opposite the room in which Vishnu resides. To challenge them, the party must have collected the Pinaka item from Parvati, who can be found from the 5th Layer of the Sun onwards. Shiva will test the party's worth, stating that if he cannot be defeated, then the world does not deserve to exist. During the battle, Shiva will can be damaged by Fire and Ice during the first turn. Anything else will be repelled. From the second turn onwards, Shiva's vulnerability will shift through the elements by one each turn, in the order of Fire, Ice, Electricity, Force, and Earth, followed by a turn where all elements may be used before starting the cycle again. Having the Null Nerve skill will prevent the Stun effect from Third Eye, and Dekunda will remove the Rakunda debuff caused by the Ragnarok skill. After being defeated, the Aksara Mantra will become available from the terminals. The party can also collect the Turn Ring from Shiva's chamber, which adds one turn icon for the party. ''Devil Survivor'' Once again, Shiva can only be obtained by fusing the Demons Barong and Rangda. He is one of the few Unique demons that can be fought in a free battle. ''Devil Survivor 2 / Record Breaker'' Shiva is sought out during the 5th Day because his Pasupata is the only thing capable of shooting Alioth down from its otherwise unreachable altitude. As Shiva is known as the "Lord of Dance", an expert dancer is needed to coax him out - Hinako volunteers for the job of reviving him. After he and Kama are successfully revived, the myth involving the two gods is reenacted - Kama shoots Shiva with an arrow, and the enraged Shiva incinerates him with his Pasupata, knocking Alioth down in the process. If the player does not support Daichi, Shiva appears during the fight with Hinako and Jungo. Defeating Shiva unlocks the ability to fuse him in the Cathedral of Shadows. Much like all his other incarnations in the previous games, Shiva can only be fused by fusing Rangda and Barong. In Record Breaker Shiva can appear in the DLC stages should the protagonists level reach 75, where he will appear as a random encounter with a powerful Garuda and Ananta. The boss music plays for these fights. ''The Animation'' Shiva also plays a part in bringing down Alioth in The Animation. However, this version of Shiva does not speak, and the process of summoning him seemed to faster than in the original game, where the player was required to protect Hinako from multiple demon teams while she attempted to summon him. This time, no such complication existed. Additionally, rather than be provoked from being hit by arrows, Shiva became angry at the sight of Kama himself, which prompted him to immediately throw Pasupata at his rival. In the process, Pasupata hit Alioth's core directly, bringing the Septentrione to a swift death and leaving the shell to fall. Gallery